Fire Breaks Out at Liam Payne’s London Flat, Three Friends Injured

A fire broke out at One Direction member Liam Payne's flat on Monday, injuring three of his friends who sustained burns. A patio heater exploded on the balcony of the penthouse nestled in the Canary Wharf district in East London.

Payne, who just turned 20 in Aug. 29, accompanied pals as they were transported from his posh pad to the hospital in an ambulance. He was also said to have pulled his friend away from the fire.

One friend, now identified as Andy Samuels, suffered 20 percent burns on his hands and face after the explosion. Another man and woman sustained superficial burns on their hands.

According to The Mirror, the blaze was the result of a refueling accident. "His friend went to fill up the gas for a heating lamp, there was some sort of accident and the whole balcony went up in flames," a source said.

It's reported that Payne was inside the flat as the blaze started. About 80 percent of the balcony was destroyed, with 35 firefighters required to put out the flames. The fire emitted a thick smoke requiring the firefighters to outfit themselves with breathing apparatuses. So this was not some minor fire, as it also forced 30 people to file out of the building, as well.

The firefighters arrived at 9:45PM local time on Monday, Sept. 2.

Station Manager Laurie Kenny, who was on the scene, said, “Firefighters worked quickly and professionally to get the fire under control as quickly as possible. About 30 people left the building before we arrived and were not injured. Two of the occupants had superficial burns to their hands and the third had burns to his hands and face. All three have been taken to hospital."

The Mirror also reports that Twitter was a source of information about the fire, as Directioners tweeted get well wishes to Andy Samuels, which outed his identity. #Prayforandy even trended on the site.

A tweet from someone reported to be his girlfriend offered an update on his condition.
We hope that Samuels recovers fully. This was a scary blaze.